About
Broad experience, impact focused.
I’m Lutfi Hakim Ariff. I started out in crisis PR, where no two days were the same, then handled communications at Malaysia’s national securities regulator. I moved into the non-governmental sector with IMAN Research and Amnesty International’s regional HQ in Bangkok. After Malaysia’s first peaceful transfer of power in 2018, I came home to serve as press secretary to Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng. After that, I co-founded Gunung Cherita, a socially conscious content and communications studio whose work includes the feature film Maryam Pagi ke Malam. I went on to lead social impact at Zak Capital, then took a Master’s in Public Policy at the University of Chicago. Today I help build mission-aligned teams and organisations, including What About Rural Health?, and I build responsible AI tools through Lutfitek. If that resonates, get in touch.
Currently in New York City
What I do
Policy and social impact
Leading social impact at Zak Capital and serving in the Finance Minister’s office, now with a Master of Public Policy from the University of Chicago. I help turn a mission into programmes that deliver.
Communications and crisis
From crisis PR to a securities regulator and a finance minister’s press desk. I keep a cool head when every minute brings a new problem.
Stories and production
Films, books and podcasts on things worth saying, from Maryam Pagi ke Malam with Gunung Cherita to What About Rural Health?